A/N: Alright, so this is story that is going to have lots of action and tension in it. It's also going to have romance in it with Lucas and Peyton. This is AU!

So basically here's the plot. Lucas witnesses a bank robbery and murder and then is put in the witness protection program where he is assigned a new name and new home. He's also assigned to a body guard by the name of Peyton Sawyer. You'll just have to read it to find out the rest. I hope you all like it! Leave a review when you're done! Thanks!

Chapter 1-The Beginning

Life comes at you fast. Sometimes, almost too fast for you to keep up with it. When things are basically thrown at you, you're not sure what to expect, or better yet, what to do. Your life can change over a course of eighty years or in other cases, just a matter of a few seconds. For the better or for the worse.

--

Lucas Scott was your average twenty-five year old man. There wasn't really anything special about him that would attract attention although he was impossibly handsome. He stood about six feet and two inches tall with buzzed, sandy blond hair. His eyes were sapphire blue and had lots of intensity buried inside of them. Lucas was a man that liked to stay in shape. He always said that he would never turn out to be alone, bald, and overweight so he worked out on a daily basis; every morning before work, to be exact.

Lucas was the basketball coach for the Tree Hill Ravens. It was the same high school he graduated from, and the same one he won the state championship for seven years ago. He loved the game and never wanted to give it up so he decided to coach the team that he loved the most.

Everyone that knew Lucas said that he was inspirational and was always ready for just about anything. He always knew the right thing to say whenever you needed consoling. He was a great man with a heart of gold. Or at least that's what his mother would say.

Lucas didn't really date much. In fact, he really only had one serious girlfriend, and that was way back in high school. Since then, all he's really been doing is playing the field. He goes on dates but doesn't ever get too close to a woman. To him, things don't end well.

9:07 a.m.

Lucas stepped out of his dark red mustang and walked to the revolving doors of the bank that he had been going to since he first opened his account. He knew everyone that worked there, and they knew him just as well.

"Hey Scott!"

Lucas smiled as he saw the pale white man call him by his last name like he had for the past thirteen years. That was Frank. He was normally the only one that would be working on Thursday. Frank had black shiny hair with chocolate brown eyes and was about five feet and four inches tall. People called him Little Frank because of his abnormally short figure. He was 40 years old, but still was in great shape.

Lucas approached the counter and held out his hand to shake Frank's. "Hey Frankie. How's it going?"

Frank shrugged his shoulders and replied simply, "It's going. I'm still sitting behind this depressing counter, but I'm good." Frank's sarcasm was always rich. You could never get bored if he was around. "What can I do for you today?"

Lucas handed him his deposit slip. "I just have to make a deposit before I head off to practice."

Frank nodded his head and accepted the piece of paper. "Ah, yes. The Ravens. Is Tree Hill going to win another State Championship now that they got the one and only Lucas Scott coaching the team?" he said raising his voice in exaggeration.

Lucas laughed a little. "We're going to try."

"You better," Frank began, "When was the last time they even won a game?"

Lucas rolled his eyes. "Not for a while. But that's all going to change. You'll see."

Frank nodded. "I don't doubt you, Scott. If anyone can turn a team into champions, it's definitely you. I believe in you kid," the pale man said honestly.

"Thanks, Frank," Lucas said with a smile.

"Anytime," Frank said, handing a receipt back to Lucas.

Luke began to walk away but turned abruptly. "Oh and for the record, I'm not a kid anymore. I'm 25 years old incase you might have forgotten," Lucas joked.

Frank laughed and waved his hand. "Get the hell out of my bank, you smart ass." He paused. "Good Luck today."

Lucas called back to him, "Thanks."

"Mmm-hmm," Frank replied as he began to sift through a tall stack of papers.

This is the part where everything begins to happen in slow motion, almost as if it's lasting for hours when really it's only just a few seconds. It feels as if the world suddenly just stops, and you're the only one who can see the events that are happening around you.

Two men in long black trench coats and dark black ski masks charged through the revolving door entering the bank. They were almost like wild, angry bulls in an arena that were released. The two men pointed a silver pistol at both Frank and Lucas.

Lucas turned his head quickly back to Frank who had the emotion fear etched across his already stone white face. When he began to whip his head back around, one of the men shoved him by his chest causing him to fall to the ground.

The men aimed the guns toward both Lucas and Frank. "Alright! Here's what's going to happen! We-"

Lucas interrupted. "Woah, take it easy man. Just-"

The two men obviously became irritated. "Shut the fuck up! I don't want to hear a word from you!" The shorter man pressed the gun to Lucas' forehead. "Alright, listen! We need all the money you got!" This time the gun man pointed the weapon toward Frank.

Frank remained frozen, clearly shocked by the abrupt intrusion. He stared blankly at the two men covered in black to hide their true identities. Frank eyed Lucas, internally screaming for him to run and get out. Lucas looked up terrified at the two men who began to become more and more angry.

The second man, who was much taller than the first, pointed his identical weapon to the ceiling, and pulled the trigger. The loud noise caused both Lucas and Frank to jump slightly, and instinctively cover their heads. "Did you not hear me? Where the fuck is the money?! I don't have all day! Hurry the hell up!" the robber turned toward Lucas and settled his gun against his mouth. "And you! I don't want to hear one word or I swear to God, I'll blow your fucking brains out!"

Lucas was tempted to speak, but remained silent. He looked toward Frank using his peripheral vision and nodded for him to just give the two duranged men the money.

Frank began to reach for something in one of the shelves underneath him. The shorter man charged toward him and pointed the gun directly to his temple. "Keep your god damn hands where I can see them! We don't want any funny business going on! You hear me?!"

The taller man continued to aim the pistol at Lucas. The robbers eyes were cold and full of hatred. It seemed as though his goal wasn't just to get the money. A part of Lucas felt that he wouldn't make it out of this bank alive. He tried to push those horrifying thoughts to the back of his mind.

"You scared, buddy?" the gun man asked Lucas bitterly. He chuckled a little.

Lucas didn't answer. He spit as hard as he could toward the man with the gun. The guy shook his head in disgust and slammed the pistol against the side of Lucas' face as hard as he possibly could. Lucas could feel the red blood start to spill from the side of his cheek. It began to sting when the cold air touched his wound.

"Hey! Come on! I'll give you the money you need! Just don't hurt him. He doesn't even work here," Frank frantically spoke, hoping they would let Lucas go.

The shorter robber played with his gun and shook it in Frank's face. "Did I tell you to speak?! Huh?!" Frank shook his head slowly. "That's what I thought. Now, take me to the back and give me all the money you got! You hear me?!"

Frank nodded hesitantly.

"Good, good. Now, I want you to keep your hands in the air and take me to the vault or where ever you keep the cash," he spoke calmly.

The taller man who had the pistol toward Lucas spoke. "Make it quick, Jim. We gotta get the hell outta here soon!"

Lucas made a mental note to remember that one of the robber's name was Jim, just in case he did get out of here alive.

Lucas watched as Frank held his hands high in the air while Jim pressed the gun to the back of Frank's head. It made Lucas sick to have to watch that. Frank was one of his closest friends, almost like a father to him. He watched until the robber and Frank disappeared into the back room.

The blood was still seeping out of the wound across Lucas' right cheek. He barely noticed the pain because fear had taken over his entire body. The cold hearted criminal kept the gun fixed on the middle of Lucas' forehead. He laughed bitterly as Lucas began to sweat.

The guy bent down to Lucas' level. "You know? I would be scared too if I was you considering the fact that your little buddy back there is going to die before we leave here. Just thought you should know," the taller man said nonchalantly.

Lucas swallowed hard.

The guy laughed loudly. "It's nothing personal." The man paused. "Well, maybe it is kind of personal. I mean after all you are Lucas Scott."

Lucas froze. He licked his dry lips slightly before speaking. "How do you know my name?"

The man chucked and pressed the gun a little harder toward Lucas. "Oh, we know everything about you! We've been planning this perfect moment for almost two years now."

What was this crazy person talking about? Lucas thought back to previous events through out his life and was sure that he never did anything wrong to cause someone to suddenly want to kill him. "What are you talking about?"

The criminal shrugged his shoulders. "Well, first we harm almost everyone that's close to you, and then eventually we'll hunt you down and kill you too. It's the perfect plan. You'll see."

Lucas opened his mouth and closed it suddenly shaking with fear. "I don't even know who you are or what you want? What do you have against me? Leave Frank alone! He doesn't need to be involved if this deals with me. I-"

He cut him off. "Relax, Lucas. Of course, Frank needs to be involved. He's like a father to you, remember? We're going to tear you down slowly. I think after we kill Frank, we'll kill your mom who's name is Karen by the way." Lucas' heart was pounding so fast. This was all too much. His head began to feel too heavy for his body as fear swallowed him. "Oh, I'm not scaring you am I?" the robber said sarcastically.

"Fuck you," Lucas spat at him. "You don't know anything about me!"

The man smiled through his ski mask. "Oh, you see. That's where you're wrong. Very wrong. Why you're twenty-five year old Lucas Eugene Scott. Small time high school basketball coach of the Tree Hill Ravens. Son of Karen Roe and brother of a little brunette girl by the name of Lily. Aspiring writer and basketball player who won the state championship in high school at the final buzzer. Do you need me to keep going?"

Who was this guy and how did he know so many things about Lucas? What was going on? This couldn't be happening.

"See, Lucas. I know you. Jim and I have watched you for two years. We've planned this perfectly. It may seem like it has a few flaws, but those can be easily corrected." The man pulled the gun away from Lucas' head and shot toward the space next to him. Lucas closed his eyes tightly and jumped. The robber chuckled a little. "I love it when you squirm like that!"

Lucas began to become angry. "Why are you doing this? What have I done to you?"

The man smiled. "That's where the funny part comes in. Absolutely nothing. You're just a target. We want to play a fun game with you since you like to play games." The robber looked at the watch on his wrist. "Hmm, the cops should be here in about four minutes. It takes them a while to respond, wouldn't you say?"

Lucas didn't answer. He turned his head toward where Frank and Jim disappeard, hoping for his safe return. The criminal follwed Lucas' gaze to the back door.

"Oh, I'm sorry. Frank's probably going to die back there, but if you want we can bring him out here and kill him," the guy said sounding sympathetic. Clearly, it was sarcastic. "You know what? That's probably a good idea." The robber pulled his fist back and punched Lucas square in the jaw. "Hey Jim! Lucas here wants you to kill Frank in front of him! Bring him out front!" He looked back at him and smiled.

"Just leave him alone! He didn't do anything wrong. Kill me instead!" Lucas pleaded. "You can't possibly think you'll get away with this!"

Lucas watched as Jim dragged Frank out to the opening where Lucas was. The gun was pressed to the side of his forehead. Frank looked scared. More scared than he had been in his entire life. Lucas couldn't bear the sight of it. It was too much. He looked away.

"Oh, that's so sweet! You're willing to take the place of Old Frank here. But thing is, that would ruin our little game. We can't kill you until we've broken you down. But don't worry. You'll get your turn soon," the taller robber said. He reached for my face and shoved it in the direction of Jim and Frank. "Watch! Watch your buddy die!"

Lucas watched as beads of sweat trailed down Frank's frightened forehead. This couldn't be happening. It wasn't fair. Frank clamped his eyes shut as he heard Jim toy with the trigger. This was it. Lucas would have to witness him die. He swallowed hard as he watched unshed tears float in Frank's brown eyes.

The man began to count down. "3-2-1."

Bang!

Lucas watched mortified as Frank's body fell to the ground. Blood from his head poured out onto the floor next to him. Lucas wanted to scream and yell and somehow save him, but he knew that he couldn't. Even if it was possible to get away from these crazy men, there's no way that Frank would have survived a shot to the head.

Both men chuckled cruelly as they watched Lucas' father figure lay there dead.

"Well, we have to go now, Lucas. Sorry we couldn't stay, but the cops will be here any minute. Don't worry they won't find us. We'll still get to play our game."

Jim reached out and slammed his gun against the side of Lucas' head causing him to jerk back in pain. "See you soon!" they called back.

As soon as they were out of sight, Lucas rushed to Frank's side checking for a pulse. "Frank! Frank! Can you hear me Frank?!" he yelled horrified. Why was this happening to him? He must have looked for a pulse fifteen times. There was nothing.

Frank was dead.

9:18 a.m.

It all happened in a matter of eleven minutes.

Lucas didn't cry. He couldn't cry. It was all too overwhelming, and he was still in pure shock.

Suddenly, at least ten cops pounced into the bank. "Police!" They yelled in unison as they held their guns out. "Put your hands in the air!" the police shouted toward Lucas.

Lucas obeyed and looked back down toward Frank. It wasn't fair. None of it was.

"Look, I didn't do anything. Two guys came in here and they took some money, and shot Frank."

The police slowly put their guns down and nodded when they saw the shock and sadness etched across Lucas' face.

"Alright. Someone get this guy to an ambulance," one of the cops called motioning toward Frank.

"He's already dead," Lucas whispered.

The cops nodded and two paramedics went to check Frank's state. They both nodded toward the cop who obviously must have been the chief, confirming what Lucas had just said. Lucas watched as they reached for a sheet and covered his dead body.

--

Lucas sat in an ambulance outside of the bank that was just robbed. Outside the bank where someone he cared about died. The paramedics were tending to Lucas' wounds on his face, spraying it with disinfectant and stitching certain cuts. Lucas talked to a detective while he was being taken care of.

"Lucas Scott?" A man in black pants and a white button up said.

Lucas nodded. "Yeah, that's me."

"I'm Detective Johnson. You don't mind if I ask you a few questions, do you?" he asked.

"Um, sure. I guess."

Lucas was still clearly in shock about the events that took place less than an hour ago.

The man took out a pencil and a small pad of paper. "Alright. I'm going to need you to tell me exactly what happened. Now, I know this is all a little overwhelming, but we need to catch those psychos so I'm going to need a great deal of detail. Tell me what they looked like, how they acted, what they did. Anything you can remember."

Lucas winced a little as one of the paramedics sprayed peroxide over the wound across his cheek. "Yes, okay. I was on my way to practice. I coach the Tree Hill Ravens, but I needed to make a deposit first. So I came here, and talked to Frank for about two minutes. I've known Frank for a while. He was someone close to me. But, um, when I was about to leave, two men dressed in black ski masks and long black trench coats came barging in the doors with pistols. They pointed the guns at both Frank and I, and told us that they wanted money. One of the men's name was Jim. He went to the back with Frank to get the money. The taller guy stayed with me and started telling me all these things about me. He knew who I was."

The detective looked confused but continued to write down what Lucas was saying.

"So he said that he wanted to play a game with me. He wanted to kill all the people that were close to me to tear me down, and then eventually kill me. They said that I did nothing to them. That I was just a target. I guess they watched me. He said they learned stuff about me over a course of two years. Then, they brought Frank out to the front of the bank where I was, and made me watch as they shot him in his head." Lucas stopped for a moment, closing his eyes as he remembered the horrible sight of it.

"Take your time, son. I know this is hard," Detective Johnson reassured.

"Then they said that they would see me soon. That's about it." Lucas shook his head. "They're coming back for my family and I."

"Can you tell me where your family is right now?" the detective asked.

"My mom and sister are traveling. They're not here. They're not even in the United States, but that doesn't mean that they are safe," Lucas said slowly beginning to panic. He feared for the safety of his family and friends.

"Woah, woah, woah. Take it easy. We're going to do everything we can to make sure that your family and friends remain safe. I promise," the detective said seriously. "Excuse me, a minute."

Lucas watched as he walked toward several cops and spoke to them for a moment. He motioned for them to go to their cars. Detective Johnson walked back to where Lucas was.

"Don't worry, son. Everything is going to be fine. We have lots of cops surveying the town, looking for these two lunatics. Until we find them, though, we're going to need to keep you safe. How would you feel about joining the Witness Protection Program?" Detective Johnson asked.

Lucas looked puzzled. "What is that?"

The detective took a deep breath. "Well, basically we'll relocate you, change your name, your identity. Also, in your case, it looks as though you'll need a body guard. Top notch, that is."

Lucas looked around. "You want me to move away from here and change my name and then have some body guard protect me just in case?"

"It's for your safety and the safety of your family and friends. I think it's for the best."

"Don't you think it will look a little suspicious if I have some huge guy following me around everywhere I go?" Lucas asked.

The detective nodded. "Yes, I do. Which is why you will be assigned a woman. One of the best. Her name is Peyton Sawyer. You can't get much better than that, and by the looks of it, you're going to need the best that I have."

Lucas laughed sarcastically. "You're going to have a woman protect me?"

Detective Johnson smiled. "Trust me. She's the best I got."

Lucas exhaled loudly. "Alright, I'm in. If it's what I have to do to try and keep the people closest to me safe, then I'll do it. What do I have to do to get started?" he asked.

"Just sign a few papers."

A/N: I know some of this was a little bit confusing, but I'll try to answer any questions that you all might have fore me in later chapters. Peyton will be introduced in the next chapter. Lucas doesn't know her yet, just to be clear. Sorry, she wans't introduced in this chapter. I just needed to start somewhere. Leave me a review and let me know how I'm doing so far.

BTW, sorry this chapter was a little depressing. The next chapters will be a bit more upbeat.